Negin Farsad

Comedian, Badass, Cornell Alumna

One time made out with a guy from the Whistling Shrimp, Cornell's Premiere Improv Comedy Group

NEGIN IS A GOOD COMEDIAN WHO HAS DONE SO MUCH FRICCIN CRAP

IF YOU REALLY ... REALLY... WANT TO LEARN ABOUT EVERY SINGLE THING I'VE DONE HERE IT IS:

Negin Farsad was named one of 50 Funniest Women by Huffington Post, named one of the 10 Best Feminist Comedians by Paper Magazine, and was selected as a TEDFellow for her work in social justice comedy. She even gave a TEDTalk because they slipped up and let a comedian on their vaunted stage. She is the author of the recently released How To Make White People Laugh, a memoir-meets-social-justice-comedy manifesto which was nominated for the Thurber Prize for Humor and recommended by Oprah Magazine. Farsad is host of Fake the Nation, a political comedy podcast on the Earwolf network and she’s a regular panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me. She appears on the current season of Nat Geo’s Year Million, the upcoming season of HBO’s High Maintenance, and the last season of Netflix’s Chelsea Handler Show.

She is also the director/writer/star of the rom-com 3rd Street Blackout, starring Janeane Garofalo, Ed Weeks, and John Hodgman (now available on Amazon). She has written for/appeared on Comedy Central, MTV, PBS, IFC, Nickelodeon and others. She is director/producer of the feature films The Muslims Are Coming! starring Jon Stewart, David Cross and Lewis Black and Nerdcore Rising starring Weird Al Yankovic (both available wherever movies are streamed/downloaded). She has written good-old fashioned articles for The Guardian, The Daily Beast, Oprah Magazine, Indiewire and others. She has sued New York State’s MTA over the right to put up funny posters about Muslims and WON.

She started her comedy career as a Cornell and Columbia-educated policy advisor for the City of New York.

WATCH: Negin Farsad on being a Pop Tart-loving Muslim American and breaking the Muslim stereotype
“’The Secret Life of Muslims’ definitely includes breakfast and breaking Muslim stereotypes through comedy”
BookWitty
“Hilarious and groundbreaking. In How to Make White People Laugh Farsad carves out a new space to talk about cultural and political identity.”
Shelf Awareness
“Negin Farsad: Fighting Stereotypes One Joke at a Time”
Willamette Week
“The Iranian-American comedian talks about her new book, film, and why Muslim-American comedy isn’t a thing.”
Shelf Awareness
“Negin Farsad: Fighting Stereotypes One Joke at a Time”
Bust
“Negin Farsad Makes Hurricane Sandy Funny In 3rd Street Blackout”
The Standard
“Comedian Negin Farsad on the Sound of Silence”
NPR
“To Change People’s Minds, First Make Them Laugh”
LA Weekly
In LA Weekly on Giving a TED Talk
Huffington Post
“List of 53 Funniest Women”
National Geographic
National Geographic on Negin at TED
Huffington Post
“18 Funny Women You Should be Following on Twitter”
Chortle (UK)
UK’s Chortle review of Negin’s standup: “witty & provacative” – “a very sharp operator” – “frankness and strong jokes”
Paste Magazine
“Chipping Away the Iceberg: Negin Farsad and Dean Obeidallah on Muslim Comedy”
Rolling Stone
“Negin Farsad: The Former Policymaker on Why Laughter is the Best Medicine”
Washington Post –Video | Article
Washington Post on the Muslims Are Coming Tour
Three Weeks (UK)
Review of Negin’s Edinburgh Show “Politically sharp and impeccably performed”
GLOC | 1 – 2
1. I Love Your Style | 2. Featured Comedian
Lancaster Daily (UK)
”Muslim Comedian Hopes to Change World With Laughs”
Nerdcore Rising: The Movie
Nerdcore Rising follows MC Frontalot the “Godfather of Nerdcore” on his first national tour to reveal the roots of the genre, the dorky complexities of its artists, and one MC’s fight for nerd stardom. Learn More »
The London Independent
More Geek Than Gangsta CBC Radio
Interview on the Nerdcore phenomenon (MP3: right click & save as)XLR8R
Interview with Negin FarsadMedill Reports – Chicago
Don’t Call It a Comeback – They’ve Been Here for a Half-LifeScribble King – UK
Interview: Filmmaker Negin FarsadEsquire
Nerdcore and the Future of MusicBoston Herald
MC Frontalot is the king of nerdcore rapNational Public Radio
American NerdcoreNashua Telegraph
Hip Hop’s Cousin is more Geeksta than GangstaNewsweek
Geeksta Rap Rising Time Out New York
New Dork CityLawrence Journal-World
Geek BeatsWired
Me So NerdyXXL
Revenge of the Rap NerdsGuardian Unlimited
Beware Geeks Bearing RiffsAZ Night Buzz
Nerdcore Rising, An Interview with MC FrontalotSan Diego City Beat
Wanna See my Pocket ProtectorThe Daily Texan
Nerdcore EnticesArizona Daily Wildcat
The Orginator of NerdcoreMiami New Times
Secrets from the Future
Madame Funnypants
Madame Funnypants is Negin Farsad and Alexander Zalben, a sketch comedy duo based in New York City that Time Out New York called, “unconventional and inventive.” They have also been called “kinetic,” “hilarious” and “talented,” among other complimentary adjectives. Learn More »
Belief.net — Review
Idol Chatter — Religion and Pop Culture Blog: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Romantic Comedy.
NYTheatre.com — Review
A review of The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Romantic Comedy.
NYTheatre.com — Podcast
An interview with the writing team of The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Romantic Comedy on NYTheatre.com as a preview for the NY International Fringe Festival. There is also a performance of one of the sketches on the show!
NYTheatre.com — Podcast
A podcast featuring Alex and Negin is now up!
Gothamist, September 27, 2005
“…a characterization that doesn’t seem all that wacky when you think about it, at least if you have a sense of humor.”
Jewish Life, 2005
“Love and politics: Alex Zarben and Negin Farsad star in “The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A Romantic Comedy.”
www.nytheatre.com, September 23, 2005
“Zalben’s stage presence is easy, dry, and vaguely intellectual, while Farsad is fearless and hilarious, bursting into song or taking on outlandish new characters with brio, and almost always hitting a bull’s-eye.”
Time Out NY
Madame Funnypants was featured in the Comedy section of Time Out New York for Pants Wanna Rock Right Now, in December of 2003.
The Onion, March 4, 2004
“Creating sketch comedy is harder than Negin Farsad and Alexander Zalben make it look, but they’ve had a lot of practice. The duo, collectively known as Madame Funnypants, has been writing and performing fresh, unusual skits for four years, winning comedy awards and an appreciative audience in the process.”
Time Out New York Critic’s Pick, July 30, 2004
“Let’s face it: Most sketch-comedy shows suck. You know it, we know it, and thankfully, Madame Funnypants knows it. The duo of Negin Farsad and Alexander Zalben dodges the traditional perils of sketch to create scenes that are as unconventional and inventive as anything else you’ll see on the local scene, but with the added bonus of actually being funny.”
Backstage, January 31, 2003
“Negin Farsad and Alexander Zalben… poke fun at the bizarre compromises we make in order to find companionship. [It] doesn’t get much funnier than this!”
Backstage, May 15, 2003
“A series of witty vignettes… These talented comics make the agony of modern romance and the omnipresence of “In Da Club” a little bit more bearable.”
Columbia Communique, February 5, 2003
“If you only see one sketch comedy show in the 3rd Millenium, make it this one. Hilarious!”
Uproar Magazine, October 31, 2003
“Kinetic sketch pair Madame Funnypants performed admirably with theatrical meta-sketches about relationships and politics, including notable riffs on workplace romance and truly honest breakups.”
Biscayne Bay Tribune
All of Coconut Grove, Brickell Avenue, and Key Biscayne learned the power of the Pants when they read this preview for MFP’s performances at the Miami Improv Festival 2004.
Bootleg Islam
Bootleg Islam is a comedy about a California-raised Iranian-American girl gallivanting around the streets of Tehran, Iran. She travels to this Middle-Eastern hotbed for a cousin’s wedding and discovers how ridiculous oppression can be, how delicious the third world has become and how hard it is to keep a chador on. Learn More »
NYTheater.com — 2004
Curtain Up — 2004
The Sun — Aug 10, 2004
Wall Street Journal — Aug 11, 2004
Time Out New York — Aug 19, 2004
Women’s E-News — Oct 18, 2004
Dallas Morning News — 2005
Chicago Reader — Jan 14, 2005
Chicago Tribune — Jan 15, 2005
Crossing Cultures — Sept 8, 2005
Backstage — Aug 8, 2006
NY1 On Stage — Sept 5, 2006
Master of None’s nuanced portrayal of Muslim life is a refreshing change: By Negin Farsad
Read Article »
Joking While Muslim in Trump’s America By Negin Farsad
Read Article »
I’m an Iranian-American Muslim. Here’s how that works By Negin Farsad
Read Article »
I’m an Iranian American and I Used to Feel Black By Negin Farsad
Read Article »
When 300 People Told Me I was Fat and Ugly Writer Negin Farsad shares the two essential lessons she learned that day.
Read Article »
We Need to Talk About Two M-Words I mean Muslims and Mexicans, and horrible rhetoric around race
Read Article »
Should the US trust Iran? That query should probably be turned on its head
Read Article »
And Now, the Muslims Are Coming—to Court vs. the MTA We’ve told you before about our funny Muslims poster campaign. It was all set. Then the MTA changes the rules. So now it’s off to court.
Read Article »
The Muslims Are Coming…to the Subways! Last fall, a certain bigot put up anti-Muslim posters in the subways. Starting next week, we get our revenge. With laughs.
Read Article »
Here’s What ‘American Sniper’ Says About America: What does Clint Eastwood’s war drama tell us about our relationship with guns?
Read Article »
Negin Farsad (The Muslims are Coming!) Talks Asghar Farhadi’s About Elly
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Gael’s Hot, But Iranian He’s Not: ‘Rosewater’ and What Triggers Casting Outrage
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Christian State, Woo-hoo! Jewish State, Yay! Muslim State, Boo! Comedian Negin Farsad asks why Americans accept the idea of a Jewish state but object to a Muslim state.
Read Article »
Miley, Minecraft, Mandela: Negin Farsad leaves 2013′s shenanigans in the dust
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ARTSblog: Dirtbag Comedians Shall Inherit the Earth
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Facing the Bigots: Here’s What It’s Like to Screen ‘The Muslims Are Coming!’ Around the Country
Read Article »
How TED makes you feel: Negin Farsad’s parting shot.
Read Article »
According To The Future: In the year 2352, they scratch their heads over Instagram, Mitt Romney, Kony, and Siri.
Read Article »
According To The Future: a (2012) Midsummer History Lesson'
Speaking Engagements:
For speaking engagements, I am exclusively represented by The Lavin Agency. http://www.thelavinagency.com/speakers/negin-farsad
For booking information, please visit the Agency’s Contact Page.
Other :
I am represented by CESD for on-camera acting, Abrams for commercial and voiceover, and Rothman-Brecher for TV/writing but to make things easier, please email me on the form below and I will forward all requests to the right agency. Or, if you just wanna email me to say hi, I’d love that too!

Here are a bunch of good photos of Negin

don't blink!

For videos and other crap... GO TO FRICCIN GOOGLE! I HAVE A FRICCING WIKIPEDIA PAGE!